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Clemens Not Surprised by Failure to Enter Hall of Fame

NEW YORK (AP) -- Former pitching star Roger Clemens says he's "not overly surprised" that he wasn't voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame Wednesday. He and sluggers Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa failed to get the necessary votes during their first appearance on the ballot, after careers in which each of them posted Hall of Fame-quality statistics that were tainted by allegations that they used performance-enhancing drugs. In a tweet, Clemens said the outcome was expected "after what has been written and said over the last few years." But he thanked those who, in his words, "did take the time to look at the facts." An agent for Bonds, who hit more home runs than anyone in baseball history, said it's "unimaginable" that Bonds wouldn't be "a unanimous first-ballot selection." He calls Bonds "the best player to ever play the game." Bonds received just 36 percent of the vote, and Clemens got 37 percent -- well short of the 75 percent necessary. Sosa, who is eighth on the career home run list, got 12 percent. For just the second time in four decades, voters failed to give any of the candidates enough votes to get into the Hall.

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